This article puts a spotlight on Arcadia sophomore Ammar Moussa, named Athlete of the Year. He and fellow Arcadia High School boys Ted Hooper and Renaud Poizat are on the All-Area Boys Track and Field team.
Senior citizens competed in the Senior Olympics powerlifting event held at the home gym of Arcadia personal trainer Harry Sneider as part of the California Senior Games Championships. The highlight of the games was seeing 89-year-old Eugene Mailin lift 140 pounds, winning gold in his weight division. Other participants named were 53-year-old Val Olotoa and 75-year-old Ernie Smith. Legendary competitor Beatrice Maullin died two weeks before the games began.
American Chinese Culture Association, an Arcadia-based group that promotes greater understanding between the U.S. and China through cultural exchange, will have members give a dance performance at the National Independence Day Parade in Washington DC. Artist Tao Haixin shows his work at Arcadia County Park.
Getting a permit to install solar panels on homes in the San Gabriel Valley is costly. A Sierra Club report shows that San Gabriel Valley cities charge more than other Southland communities. The average permit cost to install a typical 20-panel system in Southern California is about $493. Arcadia's fee is $283. A chart shows the fees of surrounding cities.
Arcadia City Council is reviewing revisions in the city's General Plan to create land-use concepts that meet statewide density requirements and still preserve Arcadia as a "Community of Homes." The revisions call for increasing the maximum density from 24 units per acre to 30 in high density-zoned areas and following mixed-use development in downtown, First Avenue and Live Oak Avenue areas. Officials want the new land-use guidelines to meet the requirements of SB375, the "anti-sprawl" legislation passed last year that aims to cut down on carbon emissions by requiring local agencies to minimize vehicle travel time through city planning.
The Arcadia Board of Education has adopted a $63.9 million General Fund budget for the coming year. The budget contains reductions across the board, with 10% cuts at schools, a reduction in categorical programs and no cost of living increase from the state.
Four Holly Avenue Elementary School teachers are moving on. Gary Sego is retiring, Robin Fox is moving to First Avenue Middle School, Heather Madla is moving to Foothills Middle School, and Kristine Iwashita-Morris is going back to Hugo Reid Elementary School.
Arcadia Public Library will have a new conference room constructed and will remodel the existing room into offices and a work area. An office will be created for the Friends of the Library. This is the first phase and the contract was awarded to K & S Design for $106,500. Phase 2 of the project, to be completed at a later date, will include a teen center and an enlarged international language area.
Richard Schulhof is the top candidate in the search for executive director of the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden. His salary will be $117,000, plus an annual supplement of $52, 935, plus an annual performance bonus of up to $10,000. The supplement and bonus will be paid by the nonprofit Los Angeles Arboretum Foundation. He is the former executive director of Descanso Gardens. He replaces Mark Wuorms.
Dr. Daniel Healy, 53, of Arcadia, pled guilty to one count of distribution of a controlled substance, the painkiller oxycodone. He faces up to 20 years in prison when he is sentenced December 7.
In this ailing economy, San Gabriel Valley property values have dropped significantly, as reflected in the county's home assessments. The county property roll is at $1.1 trillion, a nearly 1% decrease compared to 2008. Homeowners will have smaller tax bills but cities are having to reduce services and employees as they lose businesses, sales tax revenue, and property tax revenue. See a chart of Los Angeles County Assessor's Office property values report showing Arcadia and neighboring cities. Arcadia is a city whose 2009 value increased 2.2% compared to last year.
Survivors of a bus crash on Santa Anita Avenue that happened 50 years ago, on July 14, 1959, recall the accident. The bus had been carrying a group of boys from a Catholic summer camp at Chantry Flat. Brakes failed coming down the steep grade of Santa Anita Avenue. The crash killed 3-year-old Cory Matson. The driver was Brady Bolt. Ken Kramer shares his story of the crash in a separate, related article on p. A4.
Jim McConnell recalls playing on the 1969 Arcadia Pony League All-Stars team. The baseball team of 13-14 year old boys made it to the Pony League "World Series" in Washington, PA that year.